Is religion and faith not possible for some?

littletree

I ask this question because I'm starting to have the scarey feeling that I was born "faithless". Other than feeling that babies and flowers are beautiful and miraculous, I have been having the darndest time feeling 100% sure that God exists and cares. Things that religious folks say are "blessings" I just see as the product of human effort and choice, or as stuff that probably would have happened anyway. I'm not purposely trying to feel this way- I just do! Honestly (I guess it's partly the trauma of having been a JW), I don't even really care right now about joining any religion, to learn the "right" way to serve an invisible being. Both the Witness and non-Witness sides of my family are Christian, and swear that God's hand is in just about everything; but I just feel queasy when they start talking about God. I don't want to debate about evolution or creation, but moreso discuss personal, gut feelings. So my question to everyone is whether you're like me, and just don't have a solid faith, and aren't sure at all whether God exists or not? (i.e. you're not a diehard athiest, or a diehard churchgoer, either). I just wonder if my life- and the life of any children I have in the future- will be less meaningful if I don't believe in SOMETHING? I thank you in advance for your responses.

DireStraitJacket

Not believing firmly in something puts you in a great position to learn what other people and cultures believe. You can be a lot more acceptable of other peoples opinions and viewpoints, without condeming them by saying that something is not possible.
In my family I have the die-hard christians, and the staunch atheists, and both will put down and argue about the other persons belief, without even listening to what the other person has to say. I think that is a terrible way to go through life, how do you get to know someone without understanding what they believe, and more importantly why they believe what they do, if you never listen to what they have to say?
I've spent a lot of time thinking about god and religion. To me there is no concrete proof that god exists, and the arguments that many people bring up to prove that he does not exist count for nothing unless you have the same definition for what god is as the people who created the arguments.

Maybe it boils down to me not needing to believe in God. I've never had faith, maybe at some stage in my life I will feel the need to believe in something greater, but for now I'm happy not believing.

If you do have kids, give them a choice at a young age. They don't have to make the choice then, but it will help them if they are aware of the options available, rather than being force fed what their parents believe.

Carmel

Each prophet of God had introduced a new paradigm regarding the nature of God. Since the advent of 19th/20/21st century science, its over-due for an update. I feel sorry for those stuck with a biblical paradigm in the 21st century.

carmel

doogie

i know exactly what you're talking about. i personally would suggest reading some stuff about the history of the bible and jesus (i enjoyed "Is It God's Word?" by Joseph Wheless and "The Jesus Puzzle" by Earl Doherty).

i felt like it seems you do before reading them (basically, that i didn't have faith in anything divine but i still felt i ought to). i had a gut feeling that i couldn't ignore, but the intelligent portion of my brain (it's a small portion) said that i should have faith in god.

after reading those 2 books (by the way, you can read them both online for free. just google for the authors/titles), i no longer feel like i'm missing anything. i have satisfactory answers for the evolution of religion and especially christianity. faith fills a void in some lives. i think other lives require a more academic understanding of their universe.

Elsewhere

"Faith" is something that is totally contrary to my nature. Growing up as a JW all of the praying and "religious" stuff just grated at my nerves. I always hated it when I was called to open or close a meeting with a prayer... I honestly had NO idea what to say or talk about. I literally started making mental notes of what others said while praying and then just patched together bits and pieces of they all said into my "prayer".

I am much more at piece now that I have dropped all religion from my life.

littletree

I really appreciate all of the input, knowing that I'm not the only one who can't help not giving a damn (and as doogie said, yet feeling like I ought to). Doogie, I think I'm gonna look at those books you mentioned . And Elsewhere, I can certainly relate to that "peace" you have without religion! If only the holy-rollers in my family would understand. oh well.

Midget-Sasquatch

I've always felt very much like you littletoe. That's why it was so easy for me to see through the WT bunk and lies. I've been in the WT Org all this time only because of my family. There have always been people like us, there were Greek and Roman writers that doubted the existence of the gods.

Some interesting research has been done on areas of the temporal lobes and religious experiences/the propensity to believe in the supernatural. Its been dubbed by some researchers as the God Spot.

Maybe ours are atrophied?

startingover

The comments about praying at meetings really hit home. I never felt comfortable with that. I know lots of others who are still JW's that feel the same way. I can tell by the prayers they say, which are few and far between these days. The last one I heard was no different than fingering a rosary.

I too read Wheless" "Is it God's word" and it opened my eyes that I already thought were wide open. I confirmed for myself that I have no need for religion or faith. My life is complete without it. If given that choice when I was younger I would have taken it. I just didn't know it was an option.

dh

i don't believe in anything when it comes to god and religion, because i have so many contrasting thoughts, it is impossible to choose one and say 'this is what i believe', because none deserve more merit than the others, and i will not choose for the sake of it, so like the saying goes, 'the only way to win is not to play at all'. so i don't.

if i ever have kids, i will tell them honestly that i don't know if there is a god or not, and that there is no way to know for sure, and that i won't pretend. i would explain different views taught by different religions, and tell them that though some people feel in their heart/soul/whatever that there is a god, others do not, and that ultimately it is up to each of us to decide what we believe for ourselves, but also not to be so narrow minded as to dismiss things without first thinking about them.

patio34

Good thread.

One explanation may be that some people don't have a very high tolerance for myth and superstition. And that some people have a need for it and can slip into it very easily.

After all, even the Bible highlights Thomas who supposedly wouldn't believe with out proof. As Thomas Paine said, "neither will I believe without proof."

How it's phrased depends on the belief of a person. Over the years, it was difficult for me to really, really believe in a god, even the years as a very active JW. Finally, it became impossible to keep convincing myself that there was a god, then I left.

Cheers,

Pat

Is religion and faith not possible for some?

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